Azusa Hanai
Azusa Hanai (花井 梓 Hanai Azusa) is Nishiura High School's baseball team's captain and right fielder. After the game against Musashino, he is also given the position of the cleanup hitter. Background Hanai has been playing baseball since primary school, and it is implied that his interest for baseball might have been due to his mother - who is a huge fan of baseball herself - as he can be seen spending times watching matches with her since he was small. When Hanai was in middle school, he used to be the cleanup hitter and the captain of the baseball team but he didn’t seem to enjoy much of his time there, which might explain his initial lack of interest in joining Nishiura’s baseball team. His sentiment towards baseball becomes much more positive after he joins the Nishiura team and his mother attributes parts of the reason to Momoe's coaching, whom he often talks about with her. Currently, he is the captain of the Nishiura High School baseball team, and is considered to be the second most talented batter among the team (right under Tajima). Appearance Hanai shaves his head, but it's not always apparent due to him wearing hats. He is the tallest among the members, standing at 181 cm, though due to being a first year, he is still thin for his height. According to the author Higuchi Asa, Hanai would be considered the most good-looking among the Nishiura members due to his good features and lack of any noticeable facial quirksMonthly Afternoon Q&A, Chapter 100.. Personality Hanai is a level-headed and relatively smart and observant person. He is reliable, knows his own abilities, and is willing to help when needed. It has been stated that he is type of person who would stress out if he left a person in trouble alone and he is also not afraid to talk things over to their coach when needed. All of his qualities got him unanimously voted to become Nishiura's captainOokiku Furikabutte mnga, Volume 3 Chapter 9.. He seems to possess good leadership skill, as he was also selected as the captain when he was in his middle school team. He is noted by Mihashi's mother to be a very polite and well-mannered boy, immediately offering to help her served dinner when they came to Mihashi's house and also invited her to join their birthday celebration for Mihashi. Though she also notes that Hanai can be rude to his own motherOokiku Furikabutte manga, volume 4., and he especially hates it when she calls him by his given name in public or when she calls him cute. Despite their bickering though, Hanai is actually very close to his mother and is among the few baseball members who is aware about their parents' contributions to the baseball team. Outside of the baseball club, Shino'oka has noted that Hanai is a friendly person, and is able to make people relax whenever they talk to himOokiku Furikabutte manga, Volume 28 Chapter 127.. He is also responsible to his other classmates, honoring his promise to help them with the school festival's preparation after they finishes baseball practices and dragging his other teammates who tried to bail out. Inside the baseball club, he has an overwhelmingly strong inferiority complex when it comes to Tajima, whom he considers as both his teammate and rival for the clean-up hitter position. Momoe tries to fan his competitive drive against Tajima in order to further develop his own skills as the clean-up hitter, though this sometimes produces mixed results. His mood can be easily affected by how Tajima views him as a player, as he can be easily demotivated when Tajima criticizes him and equally regain it back whenever Tajima praises him. He also becomes slightly happy when Tajima openly admits to him that he is jealous of Hanai's bigger stature, which allows him to hit a homerun - something that Tajima will never be able to achieve because of his small physique. As the story progresses though, he slowly gains enough confidence in his skills and even finds it good to have an incredibly strong rival to compete with in order for him to always aim higher. Hanai is an easy target for the other members to tease because he always rises to the bait and gets easily flustered afterwards. He is also not very good at dealing with pressure, especially when his teammates put great faith in his batting ability, although he usually pushes through when it matters. Hanai has a great passion for baseball despite claiming that he is no longer serious about it when the team first forms. When first asked to join Nishiura's lineup, Hanai initially refused, showcasing his distrust of Momoe's coaching skills because there has never been a female coach before; however, Hanai immediately came around after witnessing Momoe's display of considerable athletic ability. He is currently among the members who immensely respect Momoe, and would go out of his way to never disappoint her expectations of him. He usually knows what to do for the team before Momoe even mentions about it and often voices out his concern for the team, especially when it comes to uniting their goal and strengthtening their teamwork. Hanai seems to be the more academically inclined among the members of the team, as one of his reasons for joining Nishiura is because he thinks the admission exam is easy despite Nishiura having a higher admission standards than some of the schools in Saitama. He is also among the few who can make sense of Shiga’s lectures to the team, especially when it becomes too complex and long-winding. Hanai takes his studies seriously as it was later revealed he attends cram school after practice hours, much to the admiration of his teammates and a humorous protest from Izumi. Skills Hanai is a skillful batter, and was actually the clean-up hitter from a good team in middle school. Abe has noted that Hanai has good eyes for being able to follow Mihashi’s pitch when he is batting. However, there is still quite a gap between his batting skills and Tajima's, a fact that he is painfully aware of and resulted in him sometimes losing his confidence in his own batting skills. He often compares himself to Tajima even when he tries his best not to, and the effect is sometimes detrimental to his concentration in a match. When Hanai is able to not let his insecurity affects him, he can showcase an amazing skill in batting, often able to deliver whatever batting instructions that come from Momoe and control his batting aim to a place difficult for the fielders to catch the ball. In a match against Musashino, he was the only first year who was able to hit a home run from Haruna's pitches, a feat that impressed everyone on the field, both his own team and the opponent. Because of his ability to hit home run, Momoe also has to specifically request a higher fence from the school board for their baseball field. Hanai is also highly competent on the defensive side, possessing strong throwing arms as a right fielder. In a match against Tosei, his skill in throwing the ball back to the home plate was the determining act in ensuring Nishiura's victory, which impressed both Tosei's captain Kawai and Bijoudaisayama's coach, Roka when they later discussed about the match together. Tosei's second baseman, Shingo, was also impressed by his ability to follow the ball while running ahead of the ball’s trajectory, and took note to avoid aiming the ball to the right fielder in his future at-bat. Hanai is also the relief pitcher and catcher for the team, and Momoe has noted that should the need for Mihashi to be replaced arise in an official match, Hanai will step up to his position as he has a decent pitching control. However, his skill as a pitcher is not up to par against strong opponents, and Momoe has also noted that they will lose the match the moment he replaced Mihashi. Similarly as a catcher, Hanai lacks the "meanness" required from that position in order to trick the opponent into strike out (which is a skill Abe possesses in abundance). Relationships Family In general, Hanai has a good relationship with both his parents and his younger twin sisters. He always watches baseball matches together with his parents and his family also often show up to support him whenever he participates in a match. His sisters were even saddened when his team lost in the Koshien qualification match in the fifth round. Hanai Kikue Hanai can be rude to his mother whenever he thinks she is embarassing him in public, though this doesn't seem to faze Kikue at all and she will continue doing whatever it is that he finds embarassing. She calls him Hanai or "Oniichan" in public because Hanai hates being called by his given name, Azusa (typically a name given to girls) eventhough she believes she had picked a nice name for him. However, his teammates note that Hanai is actually very close to his mother, as they always share and discuss things related to baseball together. Kikue is incredibly supportive of Hanai's participation in baseball, sending him to play baseball since a young age and never misses to support him in a match and even brings her own cheering water bottles to his matches (Abe's mother being the only other parent who does so). She is always proud of his achievement in baseball because she is aware of how hardworking he is in improving his skills, and even took a photo of the team's lineup on the scoreboard when he was finally chosen as the clean-up hitter. She also sometimes worries about Hanai being a first year captain among all the seniors from other schools because she thinks her son can be a bit too gentle, a trait that she believes he picks up from her. Nishiura Hanai gets along well with his team members, even with Abe whom a lot of them find intimidating. They often tease him, such as using the acronym of his name as their club room's lock password or calling their field's fence as Hanai's fence, courtesy of Abe's suggestion. He is also usually responsible for ensuring they stay in line, especially towards Tajima whom he believes will create mischief if he ever takes his eyes off him and scolding him whenever he strips in public. Momoe Maria Momoe knows Hanai came from a good team in middle school and is eager to have him join Nishiura, only to be met with his refusal as he has never seen a female coach before and doubted Momoe’s ability in baseball. Momoe immediately and effectively proved him wrong by hitting a near vertical pop-fly, a difficult feat to do and as noted by Hanai, none of the male coach in middle schools is able to pull. She also displayed her great strength by squeezing fresh orange juice for Hanai with her bare hands, which scared the boy witless but also earned her a tremendous amount of respect from him from the very beginning. Despite their rocky start, Hanai and Momoe form a good relationship with each other and she finds him reliable in leading the team as a captain, often taking initiatives instead of simply waiting for her orders. He also always accompanies Momoe whenever there are formal meetings, such as when she tries to set up practice dates with other teams and requesting more funds from the school board. Momoe is aware of Hanai's crushing insecurity against Tajima, and tries her best to develop his and Tajima's rivalry to be both positive and beneficial to their growths as baseball players. Momoe even took a great risk to place him as the clean-up hitter against one of the strongest team in Saitama, Senda, despite Tajima still possessing a better batting skill than Hanai. Tajima immediately realises through Momoe's change in the batting line-up that Momoe is specifically raising Hanai to be the team's clean-up hitter, both in skills and confidence. Hanai absolutely admires Momoe, either in her baseball skills or in her determination and commitment for the baseball team. This especially becomes more prominent after Hanai learnt that Momoe had lost her one and only member in the baseball club while she was in Nishiura, and yet still continues forward by forming and coaching a new baseball team after she graduated. It is implied that Hanai develops a harmless crush on Momoe as the series progresses, though it is questionable whether Hanai himself is aware of his feelings. He is more emotionally affected than the other teammates after learning Momoe’s past, and adds her dream to bring the team to Koshien to his own personal drive. He is also rather defensive when it comes to Momoe, as can be seen when he tries to counter his teammates who think she is scary as a coach. Tajima Yūichirō Hanai finds Tajima cool on the field and is always impressed by his baseball feats. However, this also easily lead to him developing an inferiority complex for Tajima, as he is always the 'second' best in the team with Tajima beating him in all but height and ability of hitting a homerun. Their relationship is odd if anything, as they cheer for each other as teammates should, but have a rivalry going inbetween. While he tries his best not to, Hanai often inadvertently placed himself below Tajima. When Tajima replaced Abe as the catcher, Hanai noticed he couldn't perform well as a clean-up hitter and offered himself as the relief catcher to Momoe. While Momoe appreciated this, she also wanted Hanai to be more assertive of his own skill as a batter and instead offered himself to be the clean-up hitter, telling him not to leave Tajima alone in bringing the runners home on the field. Tajima's words and actions can have a great impact on Hanai's moods, as he can swing from a crushing self-doubt when criticized by Tajima to being visibly happy and blushing profusely when praised by him, with all of these happening within one match. Despite their rivalry, Tajima appears to be one of the closer teammates to Hanai, even knowing his cram school's schedules when the others are not even aware he attends a cram school. Tajima is also usually the instigator when the team teases Hanai because he enjoys seeing his flustered reactions. On the other hand, Hanai is always charged with keeping Tajima in check, making sure Tajima passes his exams and dresses decently in public. In the latest chapters, Tajima can be seen having his share of insecurities towards Hanai, and this is revealed when Hanai is placed fourth in the line up, effectively replacing Tajima as the cleanup hitter in their game against Senda. For the first time Tajima lost his composure in his at-bat, to the point where it was noticed by some of his teammates and even the opponent's catcher. Momoe is surprised that the change in the line up puts more pressure on Tajima than Hanai, but believes this is a good progression to their rivalry and development as the clean-up crew. Later on, more of his insecurities add up as Hanai hits a homerun during batting practice, something which Tajima cannot even do during games due to his physique, although true to Momoe's prediction, Tajima is mentally strong enough to pull through and vows not to let them affect his focus in baseball. Abe Takaya Abe was picked as the vice-captain by Hanai because it's easier to consult a fellow classmate and along with Coach Momoe , Hanai and Abe work together to analyze data and work on strategies. Hanai is among the few people whom Abe can completely relax with, and he often shares his concerns about Mihashi with Hanai. Abe also displays his more mischievous side whenever he is around Hanai, as he is the second biggest instigator after Tajima when it comes to teasing Hanai, like telling him not give up when Hanai is going up for the lottery precisely because of his crappy luck. Being the more level-headed members of the team, Hanai can usually sympathise with Abe's struggles in dealing with Mihashi, and admits that after Abe, he would be the next one to lose his own temper against Mihashi. Hanai also seems to know how to handle Abe better than their other fellow classmate, Mizutani, and knows to leave him alone when he is in a bad mood after a fight with Mihashi. Hanai is also among the few members in the baseball club who is not intimidated by Abe, and will stop him directly when Abe gets too angry towards Mihashi. Mihashi Ren Similar to Abe, Hanai also faces great difficulty in communicating with Mihashi. Once, his attempt to communicate with Mihashi was misunderstood as bullying by Tajima which Mihashi immediately cleared up to the latter. However he empathises with Mihashi's terrible past in middle school, and was supportive of Abe's attempt to win against the Mihoshi Academy in order for Mihashi to regain his confidence as a pitcher. Sakaeguchi Yuuto Hanai picked Sakaeguchi as the one of the vice-captain in order to lead the in-fielders. As such, he sometimes goes to official events with Sakaeguchi, such as when he had to pick the lottery for the Fall Tournament. Being an incredibly observant person, Sakaeguchi typically can read Hanai's personality correctly. After seeing Hanai's reaction towards picking Senda, the second strongest team in Saitama as their first opponent in the Fall Tournament, He deduces that Hanai must have been a careful person since he was a kid and not the type to get himself into trouble, which Hanai begrudgingly admits. He also thinks Hanai is a caring person by nature when he saw him being excessively concerned about Momoe after learning of her past. Trivia * Hanai is a part of the music class and can play the piano (and play it well enough to impress Shino'oka, Mizutani and Izumi)Ookiku Furikabutte manga, Volume 17 Omake.. * His best subject is English while his worst are Math and Biology. * He takes 30 minutes to go to school. * He has a "very bad luck" when it comes to drawing lottery. He draws the seeded school (and considered "powerhouse") in the official matches - Tosei, previous year's champions, for Saitama Summer Tournament and Senda, top seeded school (second in the entire Prefecture after ARC), for Saitama Fall Tournament. * He hates being called 'Azusa' in public (as Azusa is a feminine name), so his mother compromises by either calling him 'Hanai', or 'Onii-chan' in public. Ironically, his twin sisters' names, Asuka and Haruka, are more gender neutral compared to his. Hanai's given name - and his siblings' - are all somewhat related to flowers, as Azusa means catalpa, and Asuka and Haruka are related to fragrance and spring. His family name also contains the character for flowers, 花. * His mother chose the name for him for reasons unrelated to the similarly named limited express service, but Hanai had mentioned that it's possible his father intended for his name to coincide with the express service's names after his twin sisters were born, as their names are also based on existing train services. * Hanai enjoys a hot bath even during the summer season. * It has been hinted in several scenes that he has a slight crush on Momokan, such as mentally panicking when he realizes that she isn't even a decade older than him and wondering if, 'it was really okay'. * He mentions that he has a fetish for English teachers. * According to Higuchi Asa, Hanai would make a good husband because he doesn't seem to mind doing house chores. References Navigation Category:Characters Category:Nishiura High School Category:Captains Category:Male Characters Category:Hanai Family Category:Right Fielders Category:Cleanups Category:Pitchers Category:Center Fielders